Mary (Browning) Towne (1637 - 1717)

Born 7 Nov 1637 in Salem, Massachusetts Bay

Wife of Edmund Towne — married 25 Mar 1652 in Salem, Massachusetts Bay Colony

Descendants

Died 16 Dec 1717 at age 80 in Topsfield, Essex, Massachusetts Bay

Problems/Questions Profile managers: John Putnam [send private message], Lydia Vierson [send private message], and David Babcock [send private message]

Biography

The daughter of Thomas and Mary (Unknown) Browning. ^[1]

Baptized 7 January 1638 ^[2]

Married

She married Edmund Towne on March 25, 1652 at Salem Village (now known as Danvers, Massachusetts) in Massachusetts Bay Colony .^[3]

Children

Edmund & Mary (Browning) Towne had thirteen children, all (recorded) births at Topsfield, all marriages at Topsfield:^[3]

1. Mary (Towne) Prichard b. about 1653, (birth not recorded) m. John Prichard
2. Thomas Towne b. about 1655, m. 17 Mar 1684/5 Sarah French
3. Sarah (Towne) Howe b. 26 April 1657, m. bef 20 Dec 1686 John Howe
4. William Towne b. 13 Mar 1658/9, m. 22 Aug 1694 Margaret (Wilkins) Willard
5. "daughter" Towne, 2 Sept 1661, died 7 Sept 1661
6. Joseph Towne b. 2 Sept 1661, m. 10 Aug 1687 Amy Smith
7. "son" Towne b. 7 March 1662/3, died 7 March 1662/3
8. Abigail (Towne) (Peabody) Perley, b. 6 Aug 1664, m. 12 Jan 1685/6 Jacob Peabody, 14 Jan 1695/6 Thomas Perley
9. Benjamin Towne b. 26 May 1666, died bef 1678
10. Rebecca Towne b. Feb. 2, 1668
11. Elizabeth Town b. Nov. 2, 1669, m. Thomas Wilkins
12. Samuel Towne (1673-1714), m. Elizabeth Knight

Will of Edmund Towne - 1678, Topsfield

A document written to decide the division of their father's property, and signed 1 Feb 1709/10 by Thomas, William, Joseph, and Samuel Town, sons of Edmund Towne and Mary Browning, is evidence of the following: ^[4]

Mary Browning is the wife of Edmund Towne, and daughter of Thomas Browning

Edmund Towne is the son-in-law of Thomas Browning and husband of Mary Browning

Will of Mary (Browning) Towne - 1709

Mary (Browning) Towne made her will February 1, 1709/10. She confirmed her gift of the land at Topsfield, over which she had power of disposal by the will of her father, to her four sons Thomas, William, Joseph and Samuel, left personal property to her five daughters Mary, Sarah, Abigail, Rebecca and Elizabeth, and appointed Joseph her executor. On the same date as the will, stating that "our mother Mrs. Mary Towne hath given to us her share of Land which did belong to our Grandfather Thomas Browning," the four sons divided this property and the large farm inherited from their father. Mrs. Towne survived her son Joseph and her will was probated December 16, 1717, Thomas and William being appointed executors c.t.a. The inventory of personal belongings included a silver cup and spoon.

Research Notes

The wedding of Mary Towne and Thomas Browning was at Salem Village,^[3] the town which became notorious for witch trials in 1692.

"Despite being generally known as the Salem Witch Trials, the preliminary hearings in 1692 were conducted in several towns: Salem Village (now Danvers), Salem Town, Ipswich, and Andover. The most infamous trials were conducted by the Court of Oyer and Terminer in 1692 in Salem Town."^[5]

Because of the association people made between Salem and the hanging of nineteen "witches", the town voted to change its name from Salem Village to Danvers about sixty years after the events. Danvers is located about five miles north east of Salem town.^[6] It is still associated with the historic miscarriage of justice.

Sources

1. ↑ Early Settlers of Essex and Old Norfolk, compiler Joshua Coffin, NEHGR Vol 6 (1852), page 245
2. ↑ Savage, James. A Genealogical Dictionary Of The First Settlers Of New England, Showing Three Generations Of Those Who Came Before May, 1692, On The Basis Of Farmer's Register, Volume 4. Boston, MA: Little, Brown, and Co., 1860. Page 279.
3. ↑ ^{3.0 3.1 3.2} The Towne Family, William Towne and Joanna Blessing, Salem Massachusetts, 1635, Five Generations of Descendants, by Lois Payne Hoover, (2010), page 103-105
4. ↑ Essex County, MA: Probate File Papers, 1638-1881. Online database. AmericanAncestors.org. New England Historic Genealogical Society, 2014. (From records supplied by the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court Archives.) Edmund Towne 27887:2.
5. ↑ Wikipedia Salem Witch Trials, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License
6. ↑ Danvers, Google Maps